I read about it and did some googling, but didn’t really understand it. I was hoping someone here could break it down for me. I’d appreciate both examples and definitions on the terms, as well as of course, an explanation.
In: Mathematics
Vector and scalar are the way(s) things are measured. Measuring something means counting it. If you look at a numberline:
-2 -1 **0** +1 +2 +3 And so on
Notice from zero, the numbers can be counted backwards and forward.
•In a vector, counting can be left and right, forward, backward, up, and down— vectors can have different directions.
Example: one can drive forward and backward
•A scalar can only go one direction. Only up. Only down. Only left. Only right. Only one single direction meaning only positive or only negative. In the wordy definitions of others, “magnitude” means positive or negative. Negative magnitude means left on the numberline, positive magnitude means right on the numberline.
Example: you can only measure the amount you pee in a day with one type of number, a positive volume. It is biologically impossible to pee backwards.
Someone will get technical and try to nitpick these extremely vague explanations, but that’s the general idea.
Latest Answers